Letters
by milk-weed
Summary: Seperated by circumstance, Shikamaru and Temari communicate to each other in Letters that will never be sent.
1. Chapter 1

**Letters  
A Naruto FanFiction  
by milkweed**

Shikamaru x Temari.  
All Characters and works belong to their respective owners.

**Prologue**

If I close my eyes for even a second, then that is a second of the world's history I will not see.

If I cry for even a minute, then that is a minute of laughter that I have wasted.

If I don't hug you good bye, then that may be the last opportunity to do so that I have missed.

But I must do all these things because when I close my eyes, I can dream of us

When I cry, I will cry tears of joy in remembrance of our time together.

And if I miss that hug, it becomes a promise that I will hold you when I return.

So I will leave with your face in my eyes, your voice in my ears & your name on my lips. I will remember the softness of you & the way you held me tight that last time.

But I promise I will return because I left something with you. Tears & Laughter. Joy & Sorrow. A feeling & a sound.

I left my heart with you, so carry it as I carry yours until the day we meet again.


	2. Chapter 2

**Heal the heart & take the pain. Take the selfish, take the weak & all the things I cannot hide. Take the beauty, take my tears, take my world apart. And I pray.  
- **_**Worlds Apart**_**, Jars of Clay.**

Sometimes, when I look up and see the clouds wheeling overhead, I find myself thinking, "Now, what would you be doing on a day like today?" Certainly not what I'm doing which is as boring and monotonous as a….as….well, as a meeting. Sometimes my attention just drifts away, and I only just manage to catch myself in time, before the memories start flooding in and I need to find an excuse to leave. And fast. Sometimes, I don't, memories come; unbidden or not.

Gaara scolds me for my waning attention. Maybe I should leave for a while, find my focus, my drive, my purpose again. I take his advice, not because it is sound advice, or even because he gave, but simply to escape from another place that reminds me of too many moments. In this doorway, you pulled me into you as a sudden wind raced through the streets, the sand rising in its wake. By that pot, we talked of a future that both of us wanted, but would be denied us forever. On that roof, you held me as a cried, as I was holding you. The news, too hard to take. The pain, unbearable.

I packed my bags this morning, later this afternoon I will join the train of merchants that belong to my clan as they make the long trek back to Cela, Suna's only port town. Maybe by the sea I can find some reprieve.  
It is a calming place, the place where I was born and full of memories far older than ours – they are memories of my childhood, running barefoot through the streets, clambering over stalls and onto the docks, where the sea breeze played with my hair, tossing it about and throwing salt into it that could cling for days. Talking to the fishermen, swimming in the sea – all remembered through the eyes of a girl no older than 10, determined to make her mother's people proud of her, for them to love her as one of their own.  
You were always curious as to why I was never afraid of water, always wondering why I relished every opportunity to take missions to Wave, no matter how tedious. You knew of my paternal family's history, but I never revealed to you my other half – my mother's side, and never disillusioned you of the notion that myself and my brothers even had the same mother.

My mother was beautiful. Tall, willowy, golden hair and these amazing teal eyes, always shining with laughter & joy, and with life. She was loved by all and respected by all, the first female head of our clan. She was headstrong and stubborn, but always willing to listen. Flighty and uncontrollable, yet loyal and unswervingly faithful to her people. A contradiction on so many levels, but to me she was always my best friend. She never revealed to me who my father was, but I didn't really care. She attracted just about every man she passed, though she was always careful in her relationships with them. I knew that my father must have been someone truly amazing for my mother to love him as she did, she always spoke fondly of him. And I suppose, that once, he really was. I only wish I saw that side of him. She died when I was 10, in a battle between the many different clans of the _Shelssa_, the native people of our country, to whom I belong. It was dangerous for me to remain any longer in Cela, so my aunt took me to a place she knew I would be safe; with my father and half-brothers in Suna.

Despite this tragedy, I remember Cela as a peaceful place, full of happiness.  
I pray that I will not be haunted by our memories there.


End file.
